Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Balbir Singh said the scheme ‘Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana’, providing free treatment up to Rs 10 lakh, has proved to be a boon for the people of the state.
While addressing the media, he informed that so far 1.60 lakh people have availed free treatment worth Rs 191 crore under this scheme.
Under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, the Aam Aadmi Party has prioritised health, education, and employment over the past four years, and the results are evident, he said.
The health minister also said other states across the country are now replicating Punjab’s health model.
The transformation of Government Rajindra Hospital and Mata Kaushalya Hospital in Patiala marked the beginning of a health revolution in the state, he said.
Under the ‘Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana’, 65 lakh families covering around 3 crore people are to receive health cards, out of which 25 lakh cards were already issued. Singh appealed to the public to get their health cards made proactively.
Singh said that 883 Aam Aadmi Clinics have provided free treatment to 1.69 crore people through over 5 crore OPD consultations. The ‘CM di Yogshala’ project has also brought a new revolution in preventive healthcare, benefiting around 2 lakh people daily through 8,000 yoga sessions.
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Additionally, 948 general doctors and 627 super-specialist doctors were recruited, marking the largest medical recruitment in Punjab’s history, he claimed.
He also said the government will establish nine new medical colleges in the state. Additionally, the upcoming colleges in Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala, Sangrur, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, Lehragaga, Malerkotla and Ludhiana will add 600 seats to MBBS.
The government is also procuring various equipment worth Rs 200 crore for all the government medical colleges, and setting up 22 critical care blocks with 50 beds each in all districts.
Along with free medicines, the government is also expanding diagnostic services, the minister said.
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All the district hospitals will have MRI facilities from this year onwards, CT scan facilities in eight more hospitals, and seven maternal and child facilities with 250 beds each will be made operational soon.
Over 200 empanelled private diagnostic centres are also providing X-ray and ultrasound services, he informed.
He also informed that under AI-enabled screening in five districts, 9,294 women were examined, detecting eight cases of breast cancer and 43 cases of cervical cancer. Similarly, AI-enabled eye screening of 1.07 lakh people revealed vision issues in 21,660 individuals.
The AAP leader also said the state will soon start IVF services in government medical colleges in Patiala, Amritsar and Faridkot, along with PET scan facilities in Mohali and other government medical colleges.
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Advanced procedures such as cochlear implants, liver and kidney transplants, and surgeries related to heart, brain and spine are also being conducted in these hospitals.
He said all operation theatres (Ots) at Government Rajindra Hospital were upgraded to modular OTs, and a trauma centre is also under construction.
Singh also informed that ‘Mission Amrit STEMI’ was launched across 23 districts to ensure timely treatment for heart attack patients. Under this initiative, 29,000 patients with chest pain were enrolled and 800 patients received emergency cardiac care.
Under the Punjab Stroke Project, the government has introduced an AI-enabled stroke management system through a hub-and-spoke model, benefitting 100 patients so far with 40 receiving treatment, he said.
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Additionally, many across the state are also receiving mental health support through Tele-MANAS helpline number 14416.
